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| Yummy shrimp and brussels sprouts |
For those of you who know me, it may have come as a surprise to find out I was cooking seafood for dinner. I have never liked most seafood except about 3 shrimp at a time and the occasional King crap legs dipped in melted butter. But after having some great shrimp scampi prepared by a friend's mom, I discovered I like shrimp. I like them when not over done and when NOT covered in Old Bay Seasoning. While growing up, my parents would butcher shrimp. Boil them to death and then drown them in a seasoning that they put on all seafood. Yuck!
For my birthday, a friend gave me Pioneer Woman's cookbook and in it is a recipe for Spicy Lemon Garlic Shrimp. I gave it a try and it is so easy and yummy!!
Recipe
1 c. butter, cold (2 sticks)
4 cloves garlic, peeled
1/4 c. parsley
juice of 2 lemons
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
2 lbs. raw shrimp, devined with shelled on
Preheat oven to 375 degrees
Put all ingredients except the shrimp in a food processor and process until well combined.
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| Place butter on top of the shrimp |
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| Shrimp just out of the oven |
Enjoy!
Why I like this recipe - It is fast. It is easy. It is delicious! Need I say more?
The recipe calls for shrimp with shells on. I have found that I lose much of the seasoning when peeling the shrimp to eat. Next time, I will remove the shells of a few of the shrimp and see if it makes a difference in the way the it cooks and tastes.
Wild versus Farm-raised Shrimp:
There are many reasons why choosing to eat wild-caught shrimp (or any seafood for that matter) is best. We can consider the ecological, economical, and health problems associated with farming shrimp.
Demand for shrimp in the U.S. has grown dramatically in the last half of the 20th Century causing domestic production to not be sufficient. Because of this, 90% of the shrimp sold in the U.S. is from foreign import. The country who imports the most, is Thailand. Thailand, and other countries, saw their opportunity and began farming shrimp. Asian and Latin American shrimp farming is mainly performed in areas that used to be mangroves.
Mangrove forests line coastal areas and are great for the environment by providing food and shelter to many types of fish and sea-life. Their roots are very large, long, and intricately woven together which helps protect the coastal land from erosion. When these plants are removed to make way for shrimp farms, all of these benefits are also taken away. Because these forests are great homes for fish, many coastal communities would fish and make a living from the mangroves. Fishing communities are being destroyed because fisherman can't make a living.
As far as the health effects of farm raised fish, the consumer is effected as well as local wildlife. Shrimp farms use a lot of pesticides, antibiotics, and artificial feed. These pollutants end up in the shrimp you eat as well as get released into local water systems. Once released, these pollutants can harm local wildlife and the people who drink the water.
These are just a few of the problems associated with farming shrimp. You can read in more detail online. There are so many sources of information out there. Luckily, it is now required to label the shrimp as to how they were produced. It is still your choice whether or not to buy farmed or wild-caught shrimp, but I know what I'll be purchasing!
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